Scar Tissue
by woodrosegirl
Summary: AU story set after "Hunting" - Stacy, confused by her feelings towards House goes on a soul searching mission, only to have House and Wilson join her to help her through her emotions. Contains generous heaps of back-story. House/Stacy romance, House/Wilson/Stacy friendship.
1. Chapter 1

**I was always fascinated by the House/Stacy relationship, and the dynamics that House/Wilson/Stacy shared. I never wrote anything for them back when I** **originally watched it, but, during a re-watch of the series I fell in love with them all over again...and this was born. If you don't like Stacy, you probably won't like this. If you do, I hope you read and review. (Even though this is 10 years too late)**

 **I own nothing.**

 **Chapter One**

"All this time you've been manipulating me."

The words catch in her throat and a sudden wave of nausea washes over her as she realises what Greg's been doing all along. Pulling the ice off his face she feels like a fool for tenderly caressing his cheek with it mere seconds ago. Greg's eyes flicker downwards, and the guilty look in them tells her all she needs to know. Stacy crosses over to stand behind her desk, suddenly feeling the need to have a solid barrier between them.

"…..because you want to be with me."

"I don't anymore…Get out."

He bows his head and doesn't protest. Only once he's safely out of the door does she allow her emotions to envelop her. Anger, sadness and betrayal all course through her as she berates herself for not realising sooner that Greg was up to something. Her mobile buzzes on the desk, and she fears looking at it, just in case its Greg wanting to play 'round two' with her emotions. Forcing herself to look down she sees its just Mark. They were supposed to be out with friends for dinner, she remembers. She can't bring herself to answer and she can't bring herself to go out and be social.

Greg's behaviour had worked, albeit backfiring in the most horrific way. However, unfortunately, she thinks he was right. Being up in that attic with him, being honest with each other finally, after all those years….Dammit. It felt _good._ No, _great._ But how much truth was in those moments? The emotions that had been stirred up, even under misdirection were too raw, too real. Her heart buzzed with House, her rational mind, Mark.

A cold stream of liquid suddenly hits her elbow and she realises that the ice that she had tossed onto her desk had started to melt. Scooping the melted mixture up with some tissues she throws it in her bin, just as her phone buzzes again. It's Mark, again.

'I can't do this anymore.' She says to herself, as she realises that she can't be with either Mark or Greg right now. Luckily, she knows the exact place to go to for a few weeks of respite. Mind quickly made up she stands and grabs an empty box from underneath her desk and begins to pack away her personal belongings and some of her law books. Turning to her computer she begins to type out a resignation letter to Cuddy. She'd only got as far as 'I apologise for the short notice' when there was a small knock on her door. Feeling irritated by the interruptions coupled with the urgency to go through with her plan she shouts "Go away!"

She hoped that the other person would get the hint and leave her alone but the next sound she hears is Wilson's voice.

"I'm not House!" he said, then, after a beat "and I haven't even done anything wrong!"

Stacy sighed.

"Come in."

He entered, wearing a sympathetic look.

"Unlike him" Stacy said. Wilson sighed and made his way over to the small sofa.

"House?"

"Who else?"

"I'm sorry Stacy." He said sincerely. "I didn't know what he was planning to do with that infor-"

Stacy cut him off.

"So you knew? You knew what he did?! What did he do? Skip straight over to yours and gleefully read you all my private information?"

Wilson couldn't quite meet Stacy's eyes.

"Apart from the skipping part….pretty much."

"James! I thought that I could at least trust you!"

Wilson snapped his gaze up from the floor to look Stacy directly in her eyes.

"You can! Believe me; I tried my best to detour him away from doing what he was doing. Short of taking his cane away from him what was I supposed to do? Look, Stace" he sighed. "I'm sorry that he hurt you, but this situation…this isn't the start of some epic romance."

"You can say that again."

"You know what I mean."

"James, I don't know anything anymore." She raked her hands through her hair in frustration. "I don't know if he wants me back, or if he's just trying to hurt me."

Wilson just stared at her.

"The first point is completely moot! You're married!"

"I know that." She says evenly. "And I didn't say I wanted _him_ back. I just….I just want to know where I stand with him."

They were silent for a moment.

"Do you know what date it is in a week's time, James?"

Wilson creased his forehead in thought.

"April….7th…what does that…" then his memory kicked in. "Oh Stacy…I'm sorry."

She nodded.

"It's the tenth anniversary. Do you know what was going through my mind the whole time we were in the attic together?" She laughed a hollow laugh. "I thought that he remembered, I thought that's why he was being so kind, I thought that's why he was trying to make amends." She looked down, trying to blink away tears. "It sounds so stupid."

Wilson moved from the sofa and crossed to the chair facing her desk. Sitting down he reached for her hand.

"It doesn't sound stupid at all."

Stacy squeezed his hand.

"Thank you James." She cleared her throat. "But that's not what he was doing. I have no idea what he was doing, and I….I don't know what I'm doing….I just know that he made me feel things, emotions that I thought I'd locked away. That's why I'm so angry. With myself just as much as him."

"So how do you move forward? You have to carry on working with him."

Stacy shook her head.

"No I don't."

She let go of Wilson's hand and turned back to her computer, typing rapidly. It was then that Wilson noticed the packed boxes under he desk. His brow furrowed.

"Stacy what are you doing?" She ignored him and concentrated on finishing her letter.

"You can't run away from this."

She finished typing and quickly e-mailed it to Cuddy.

"Why not? This isn't going to end well, for any of us. Greg and I…." She sighed, before turning her chair back around to face Wilson. "And Mark and I…well you saw for yourself. And I'm not running away, I'm just going away from all of this for a few weeks. I need to clear my head; I can't be here right now."

Wilson nodded.

"But you're coming back?"

Stacy nodded slowly.

"Yes." She subconsciously brought her hand up to touch her crucifix. "I just need some time alone. I hope you understand."

"Would I be able to change your mind even if I didn't?"

Stacy shook her head.

"No, I'm sorry James."

"You don't need to apologise. Are you going to tell him?"

"He is the last person I want to see right now."

"And the other….him?"

"I'll leave him a note. I need to grab some stuff from the house before I go."

"You're leaving tonight? I know you like to have your escape routes planned but isn't this a bit hasty?"

"I can't go back to Mark and pretend that's everything's fine, James. I'm not running away. I'm walking. Greg was right. I didn't tell Mark that he was coming round, and I did like where things were going. I wanted to kiss him, when I was lying on the floor of my attic pouring out my soul. I'm not over him. I never was. And you saw the notes about Mark and I. We all need a break."

Wilson nodded slowly.

"I hope it all works out for you."

" _You've only known her for a few days! How do you know this will work out" House snorted at Wilson's outburst. "You sound like a hysterical girl."_

" _I don't care! And speaking of girl's who even is she?"_

" _She is called Stacy."_

 _He quickly shoved a portion of fries into his mouth so he purposely couldn't say anymore._

" _And?"_

 _He waited for House to finish his mouthful, glaring at him impatiently._

" _Well, that's who she is."_

" _Is that all you know about her?" House shook his head. "Well I take it from the smirk that's been on your face for the past few days that you know all about her body."_

" _A gentleman never kisses and tells."_

 _Now it was Wilson's turn to snort._

" _You re in no way a gentleman!"_

" _Mmmm, Stacy certainly doesn't think so. First date disaster. Luckily, she realised the error of her ways, and fell for my charms."_

" _So much so that she agreed to move in with you?"_

" _Pretty much."_

" _How?"_

" _A magician never reveals his secrets."_

" _You're not going to tell me anything else are you?"_

 _House shook his head and returned his attention to his lunch._

" _I just know that I like her, okay?"_


	2. Chapter 2

**Thank you for the reviews. I have a few chapters of this already written, but was always too afraid to post it!**

" _Well I never worry, and that is a lie" – Red Hot Chili Peppers – Under The Bridge._

"What the hell did you do?" House looked up from where he was sat scribbling notes to see Cuddy storming through his door brandishing a piece of paper.

"Adopted a rat. I hope these are his official adoption papers for me to sign."

Cuddy slammed the piece of paper down onto his desk.

"Stacy. What did you do?"

House glinted his eyes to the side and upturned the corner of his mouth.

"Oh I haven't _done_ Stacy in years, between you and me though; I'd quite like the opportunity to 'do' her again."

"Well sadly, you won't get the chance to _'do'_ her again. She's left. And without Mark. I've had several frantic phone calls from him." House looked up sharply. "There's only one reason she'd leave, and that's you. So please, tell me, what the hell did you do to make my best hospital attorney, the only one that can deal with you and my friend pack everything up and leave?"

House turned the paper over and quickly read the words that Stacy had written. Trying to keep his face neutral he replied to Cuddy.

"And what do you expect me to do about his? Go off and find her and bring her back here, slung over my shoulder like someone from Seven Brides for Seven Brothers? She's clearly seen that marrying that lemon was a terrible idea, and that coming back here to work was an even worse one and she's gone off to lick her wounds."

He paused and glanced back at Stacy's printed words. The letter was short, to the point. Written in a rush he imagined.

"Why do you care so much? I don't have that many pending lawsuits against me."

Cuddy folded her arms.

"You have three, but that's beside the point. Stacy is my friend, and I care because I'm a human being! I just want to know that she's okay. This behaviour….this doesn't concern you at all?"

He fiddled with his pen and avoided Cuddy's eyes.

"No. Stacy's a big girl, she can handle herself."

"Fine."

Cuddy turned on her heel and stormed out of his office. House sighed and picked up his ball, thinking. Stacy was many things, but irrational was not one of them. The control she had over herself was one of the things that first attracted him to her in the first place, and something he admired about her the most. Flaky, irrational women weren't really his thing. It was her strength of mind and confidence that drew him to her when they had first met. She was authoritative without being too bossy, assertive without being too pushy, dominant without being aggressive. Although he wouldn't admit it to Cuddy, he was concerned. Running away wasn't in Stacy's nature. She wasn't one to back down from a fight, and that was part of what made her such a good lawyer. He knew he'd caused her some upset over his actions, but he'd been fully expecting for her to come and berate him this morning which was why he was sat in his office, like a sitting duck pretending to work. They'd always been so good at arguing, and even better at making up afterwards. He read through her e-mail to Cuddy again. He didn't believe deep down that he was solely to blame for this. So what else had happened? Fight with Mark? But then that he would have known she'd left and that wouldn't explain the frantic phone calls. So what else? There were only a few times during their relationship where he had seen her lose it completely. She'd had bad days, and work stress where she would cry quietly. But running off completely? She may have felt like doing that after his surgery, but she stayed. Even during all the painful months after, she stayed. The only time she'd ever really lost it was….A thought crossed his mind and he checked the date on the e-mail again.

"Dammit." He said to himself, then sighed. "I know where you are."

" _Where is she?" Wilson craned his neck to peer at the entrance of the bar._

" _She's five minutes late! Stop acting like such a girl."_

" _I'm just curious, I've heard her name around the hospital but I've never met her."_

 _House took a long sip of his drink and placed his hands in his lap. They were fidgety, and he didn't want to give away any hint of nerves. He would never admit it, but this was a big deal. Wilson had never met any of his girlfriends before, heck, none of them had ever stuck around long enough to actually meet anyone in his life. Stacy was completely different from anyone he'd been with before. Sure, she hated him at first like most people did, but to go from hating him on day one to moving in with him a mere four days later….that had to count for something. He'd joked to Wilson that she'd fallen for his charms, but the truth was that he had completely fallen for her. She was the first woman that he'd ever met who could easily match his snarky banter. Not to mention that the sex was incredible. He knew that a match in snarky banter and dynamite sex weren't usually the best pre requisites for reasons to live with someone, but so far it was working. He knew she felt the same way, he could tell by the way she would sneak him into her office at lunchtime, pushing him against her desk, kissing him hard and climbing on top of him._

 _He shook his head, trying to rid his mind of sexual thoughts. It just wouldn't be right if he began to sport an erection, and Wilson was nervous enough about simply meeting Stacy. It just wouldn't do to start humping her on the table in front of him. However fun that might be._

 _He pushed his mind back to their conversation._

" _The reason why you've never met her" he said in measured tones. "Is because you've never been sued. By the way, you're really missing out on hot lawyer action." He said with a smirk._

" _So I should endanger my patient's lives just so I can get sued and get some 'hot lawyer action'?"_

 _House smirked._

" _I forgot, you'd rather screw your nurses."_

 _Glancing up he saw Stacy enter the bar and look around. As she spotted House she broke into a smile and Wilson noted that a dopey grin spread across his friend's face as he stood up to greet her._

" _Well" House said. "Here she is."_

Striding through the long hospital hallways, House kept Stacy's letter firmly tucked into his jacket pocket until he reached his destination. Pulling it from his pocket he opened the door without knocking and brandished the letter in front of Wilson's face.

"What do you know about this?"

"If you're holding a positive pregnancy test then you only have yourself to blame."

Wilson spoke without bothering to look up.

"No it's not." He said it with more edge to his voice than he intended. That made Wilson looks up sharply. Spotting the piece of paper in his hand he said. "I take it that's Stacy's resignation?"

House shoved it back in his pocket and sat down.

"So you knew?" Then half to himself he muttered "Of course you knew."

"I didn't intend on knowing. I interrupted her."

House nodded. So the break between sentencing, the slight incorrect punctuation…..she had been disturbed.

"So what did she say?"

"You mean is it your fault she's gone?"

House exhaled noisily. This blame game tag team that he'd had from Cuddy, and now Wilson, was starting to annoy him.

"I don't you think you helped matters, but there is…." Wilson squirmed. "I think you were the last straw..as you could tell though from your illegal heist of her psych notes, there are other difficulties in her life besides you."

He did know.

"Dishes in the sink and leaving the toilet seat up aren't normally a pre requite for running away."

"She didn't run, House, she walked. She walked away. She was confused and upset, but she knew what she was doing. She thought of an escape plan and went with it."

House tapped his cane onto the floor, the familiar rhythmic sound feeling comforting to him. Wilson gave him a sideways glance.

"You're not asking the question I thought you'd ask."

"That's because I already know the answer. I just don't know what to do about it."


	3. Chapter 3

"Today my love smiled on me, it took away my pain say please" – Red Hot Chili Peppers – Soul To Squeeze.

" _So what do we do about it?" Stacy's voice was sombre as she sat in Wilson's office. He looked at her with apologetic eyes._

" _This form of cancer is very aggressive, and due to its advanced stage, treatment options are limited." He took the seat next to her and took her hand. "We can make her comfortable, monitor her pain, and maybe look into respite care."_

 _Stacy felt numb, to the point where she didn't even realise that Wilson was holding her hand. She looked up and realised that he had stopped talking._

" _Stacy? Did you hear what I just said?" She nodded._

" _I heard. I've just realised why you never get sued…..you are really good at this."_

 _Wilson nodded. It was an awful skill to have. He hated breaking this type of news, especially to people he considered friends. Perhaps he should have chosen a happier speciality, he thought. However there were the miracles….patients who were terminal and somehow managed to beat their illness and stay cancer free. If only it would happen in this case, he thought._

" _Do you have any questions for me?"_

 _She just stared blankly at him._

" _I should do, I should have a lot. I'm a lawyer for God's sake! Questioning the evidence…that's what I do. If I was in court right now, discussing anyone else, I'd have them all in my arsenal. But it's my mother…" Wilson continues to hold her hand and listen. "If we were in court, I'd make you talk me through all the evidence you have but…" She presses her other hand to her forehead. "If this was anyone else I would be completely rational about this."_

" _You're not meant to be rational about this, Stacy."_

" _No but I am though! That's what I do, I make rational decisions based on the evidence that's in front of me. Mind you, I did that with Greg and look what that led too!"_

 _She snatched her hand away from Wilson's and buried her head inside both hands. She wasn't really making sense to herself. Suddenly she felt too hot, like the air was clawing at her, and she felt her chest constrict._

" _I can't breathe…..I need some air."_

 _With that, she ran out of Wilson's office, out to the cold, spacious roof. Wilson let her go. He'd seen all manner of reactions to hearing the news that a loved one had terminal cancer. It never got any easier. He knew she would have run off to the roof, but he wouldn't follow her. She needed some time alone to focus. First Greg's illness, and now this. Sometimes he hated his job._

House strode through the long hospital corridors, ignoring the fielding questions of Cameron and Foreman about a recent case. Unfortunately they both kept his stride and continued to bombard him with questions until he snapped and snarled at them.

"You guys do realise that you are Doctors right?! That you don't need Daddy's approval over every little thing!" They stood back, slightly shocked by his demeanour. Of course they were used to his moods and sarcasm, but this outburst seemed to be fed on an emotion that they hadn't seen before. They gave each other quizzical looks, but Cameron took the bull between the horns and shoved the file in House's hand.

"There's a life at stake!"

He stopped and swivelled on his good leg, ignoring the 'puppy dog' eyes that she always gave him. Taking the file off of her he quickly scanned through the test results.

"No there's not." He handed the file back to Cameron. "Look again at the blood results. And if you haven't figured it out by the time I get back, you're all fired."

"Back?" She looked at him confused. "You never go away." Then a look of resignment crossed her face. "This is about Stacy isn't it?"

House swore to himself. 'How the hell had that spread across the hospital that fast?' he thought. 'If anyone thought hospital super bugs spread like wildfire, then they clearly have no idea how fast gossip could spread'

Cameron read his expression.

"I thought so."

House recovered from his thoughts.

"This has nothing to do with you. This has nothing to do with anyone of you! Now, cure this patient or I mean it, you'll all be fired."

This time his words seemed to work and Cameron let him leave, just offering a shrug to Foreman. After a few more strides House reached his intended destination, Cuddy's office. He walked in, without bothering to knock.

"All those holiday days I never took. I'm taking them now."

" _I think we should book a holiday" he says whilst watching Stacy stretch out in bed lazily. She propped herself up on her arm so she could look at him properly._

" _Already? We've practically just met" House ran his hand down her side, enjoying the way his hand fitted against her waist. Everything seemed to fit with the two of them. It a way it infuriated him. It shouldn't be like this with someone you've only known for two weeks, wasn't meeting someone and figuring out your next move supposed to be hard? In a medical sense, Stacy was as easy to read as a common cold. He squeezed her waist. "So? You moved in with me a week ago." She moved closer to him, enjoying the feeling of his hand on her side._

" _That was a means to an end." She nuzzled him, before drawing him to her for a deep kiss. House's mind went into overdrive. How could he already love this woman after two weeks? As her tongue slid into his and she moved her hands down to his groin he forgot all his doubts. He groaned at her advances, breaking the kiss to move his lips down to her neck._

" _Is that all I am?" He asked. She arched up into him, as his hand travelled south, wanting more of her._

" _A very happy means to an end." He hummed against her as his lips travelled to her breasts._

" _So a holiday then? I'm thinking anywhere that involves you wearing a skimpy bikini." Stacy was finding it hard to think as his tongue brushed against her nipples._

" _I have to work." She eventually managed to say. He grazed his hand against her folds. "I'm a Doctor, I'll write you a note." Stacy, annoyed by his teasing manoeuvred him so that she was on top and in control._

" _Fine….But just so you know I sunbathe naked." House groaned at the thought, just as she slipped him inside of her._

' _Holy fuck…' he thought. 'Who knew relationships were this easy?'_


End file.
